


Brothers in Arms

by Lakritzwolf



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies)
Genre: M/M, Soldier AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-22
Updated: 2019-03-22
Packaged: 2019-11-28 02:25:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18202238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lakritzwolf/pseuds/Lakritzwolf
Summary: Written for the GatheringFiKi Spring Raffle 2019Prompt 139: Army or Police Au. Pairing works together in someway (can be partners, or indirecty) and have crushes on each other but haven’t admitted it. There’s a big mission/job. One character is injured, the other is trying to protect them until help arrives. Confession time!





	Brothers in Arms

The sandstorm had cleared, but the burning sun that now showed its face again made it unbearable to be outside in a totally different way. Even wearing only a tank top inside the tent didn’t help, because he still had to wear the rest of the fatigues and combat boots. Fili frowned at his gun, having just cleaned it. The heat would be the death of him. Sometimes it felt as if a dragon was constantly breathing down his neck.

Something else was breathing down his neck, too. Kili was out on patrol, and had been since Tuesday. They had been due in base camp two days ago, but there was no trace of the squad. Enemy activity had picked up these last days, and the scouting operation had had the goal of finding the enemy base.

Fili looked up as someone entered the tent, but Dwalin just gave him a nod before he fell down onto his cot with a groan.

“News?” Fili couldn’t help but ask.  
“Nada,” Dwalin grumbled. “Sergeant is about to declare the squad LIA.”  
“What?” Fili dropped his gun. “He can’t do that! They’re only been overdue for two days! We need a search team out there!”  
“You tell him,” Dwalin said and folded his arms under his head. “I just talked until my lips went blue and all it got me was a week of CC duty.”  
“Fuck.” Fili sighed and cast a sympathetic glance at his comrade and friend. A week of latrine maintenance, or crapper cleaning as it was called in the ranks, was a hard job, especially in this heat.

Fili debated with himself if he should try his luck, but the sarge was a stubborn bastard and wouldn’t listen to anyone.

“I know it sucks, lad,” Dwalin said after popping a fart. “We all know how close you and Kili are. Glued together at the hip.”  
“I should’ve been out there with him.” Fili stared at the entrance of the tent.  
“Like a brother, is he?” Dwalin’s voice was low.  
“Yeah.”

Truth was, Kili was anything but a brother. But soldiers weren’t gay, and even with how close they were, he didn’t know which way Kili was swinging. Fili had studiously avoided anything sexual in their conversations because the last thing he wanted was for things between them become awkward.

No, he had a massive crush on the Irish lad with eyes he wanted to drown in and a smile to light up a room. But he would never say so, because he didn’t want to ruin their friendship. So brothers they were, brothers in arms and best friends, but never more.

And now Kili was out there, and Fili didn’t even know if he was still alive. It was driving him mad, but breaking orders and slinking out of the camp under cover of darkness would only get him killed, alone out there. And he sure as fuck wouldn’t ask any of his other mates if they would come organise an unauthorised search party.

It turned out to not be necessary, after all. Fili noticed the commotion when he left the tent for a piss, and immediately started running when he heard the words ‘distress call’.

“They’re still out there?” Dwalin asked the com officer.  
“Apparently.” Nori shrugged. “And-”  
“Still alive?” Fili cut in, slightly short of breath.  
“Well some of them are,” Nori said drily, “or they wouldn’t have made the distress call.”  
“Come on, Durin,” one of the soldiers behind him said. “You’ll get your fucktoy back.”

Fili spun around and without missing a beat planted his fist right into the guy’s face. “Kili is not my fucktoy!”  
“Fuck!” The other soldier clutched his bleeding nose. “Jesus fucking Christ, man! It was a fucking joke!”  
“It wasn’t fucking funny,” Fili snarled, and turned to Nori again. “Is there going to be a search and rescue squad?”  
“Guess so,” Nori replied. “Sarge is talking to the brass right now.”

The thought of Kili out there, in god knows what kind of danger, made Fili want to crawl out of his skin. He had to do something, but he had cleaned his guns three times today already, and there wasn’t anything else for him to do. Lucky for him however the tension didn’t last long. And he thanked every divine entity that would care to listen that he was a member of the squad.

The mission started easy enough. The location was a small village that had been reported as abandoned, behind a ridge of rocky hills thirty miles east. They took position in the cracks and behind rocks on the slopes above the village, but had to wait for air support to strike, because no one knew where the enemy was stationed. The scouting team had taken shelter down there, but were trapped. They needed the air support for the off-chance that there was heavy artillery somewhere in the hills, so they could get their own boys out of there.

Time seemed to drag on forever, with Fili trying to catch a glimpse of movement down there with his binoculars, but there was nothing. Probably because they would be under artillery fire the moment they stepped out of cover. 

The sound of jet engines had never been so welcome, and Fili fist-pumped as the three Typhoons swung by overhead. With air support now covering their advance against possible artillery, soldiers now descended into the valley towards the village.

It wasn’t as easy as it had looked, of course. The bastards had hidden in underground shelters, bursting out like monsters from the deep as Fili’s squad had almost reached the village. So not only was there heavy artillery, but also enemy soldiers surrounding the village their boys had taken cover in. No wonder they hadn’t made an attempt to get out of there. And all the enemies had to do was wait until they would run out of water or ammo, or both, to take them down without casualties. They probably were after prisoners, not a bunch of dead bodies.

Explosions from the hillside told them that the Typhoons were doing their job, and squad leader Dwalin gave the sign to attack.

Drill took over as Fili stopped thinking. Duck, cover, check, attack, run, duck, cover. He felled two soldiers and a third one as he had almost reached the wall that encircled the small village. But then he heard gunshots from inside the walls. He was about to curse when he realised that those were their own boys, sallying from their shelter to join the fighting.

And in the chaos and mayhem of screaming soldiers and hail of bullets, Fili had only one thing on his mind.

“KILI!” He screamed at the top of his lungs. “KILI!”

Some of the men from his own squad now joined his side and they stormed the village, greeted by triumphant howls of their own lads.

“Christ, we thought we’re all toast!” One of them yelled.  
“Not today!” Fili yelled back. “Is Kili with you?”  
“Oakenshield?” The soldier jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Over there somewhere.”

Fili could have cried in gratitude that Kili was still alive, and he rounded the corner so fast his boots skidded in the gravel. He spotted him instantly, but what he saw behind him made his blood run cold. One of the enemy bastards had climbed the wall and was just cocking his gun.

“KILI! SIX O’CLOCK!”

Kili spun around and dived for cover, but was too slow.

Fili felt his blood run cold as he watched Kili fall, and with a scream he charged the other soldier like a madman. He fell over backwards, his gun toppling to the ground as he vanished out of sight, and Fili didn’t waste another second. He fell down onto his knees next to Kili and turned him carefully around.

“Kili... fuck, don’t do this to me...”  
But to his utter relief, Kili opened his eyes with a groan. “Fili?”  
“Think I would leave you hanging?”  
Kili shook his head, his face pale and his lips grey with dust.

Fili let his eyes wander across Kili’s body, and his blood ran cold again when he saw the bullet wound in Kili’s leg. It was bleeding horribly.

“Fuck...” Fili had never gotten rid of his belt that fast before, and he quickly improvised a tourniquet around Kili’s leg. Kili was visibly in agony, but gritted his teeth with a groan.

But they were apparently fucked. Fili could hear yelling and screaming and orders to take cover. They were surrounded.

“Shit... Kili we need to get inside somewhere.”  
“Then fuck off,” Kili groaned. “No need for both of us to get killed.”  
“Are you out of your fucking mind?” Fili hissed. “Think I run and let you croak it?”

A tired smile appeared on Kili’s cracked lips, and he shook his head.

“Thought so. Come on.”

It was agony, but Kili managed to get onto his feet, leaning heavily on Fili, unable to use his right leg. They barely made it into one of the small houses, and Fili barricaded the door after gently depositing Kili in a corner. The windows of the house were boarded up, but that would offer little protection if someone wanted to get inside by brute force.

Fili lowered himself down next to Kili and helped him sit upright, propped up against Fili’s shoulder.

“You got any water?” Kili asked, voice rough.  
“Sure.” Fili took his canteen, and when Kili’s hands were shaking so hard he almost couldn’t grasp the bottle, he helped him drink. “Easy, now. Take it slow.”

Kili let his head fall onto Fili’s shoulder with another groan. “We’re done for, right?”  
“We have air support out there,” Fili said. “And I heard Dwalin send a distress call. We’re getting out of here. Promised.”  
“Yeah, because you owe me a drink.” It was a brave attempt at a smile.  
“You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”  
Kili actually managed a low, hoarse chuckle. “Not my fault you wanted to make that stupid bet.”  
Fili chuckled as well, ignoring the gravity of their situation.

Outside, it was momentarily silent, but it was an ominous silence, as if the world was just holding its breath before the biggest clusterfuck ever.

“’m so cold,” Kili muttered.  
“Shit...” Fili draped one arm around Kili’s shoulder. “You’re in shock. Stay awake.”  
“Tired.”  
“Like fuck you are. Look at me.”  
Kili kept his eyes shut.  
“For fuck’s sake, Kili, look at me!”

With a laborious move, Kili managed to lift his head and look at Fili.

“Eyes on me,” Fili said firmly. “Don’t check out on me. Think of the drink I owe you. Your favourite pub in Dublin, remember?”  
“Yeah...” Kili’s voice was rough. “Wanted to... have you try Mam’s mince pies at... Christmas...” He groaned again.  
“Looking forward to that,” Fili said. “I’d love to meet your mum.”  
“Mam...” Kili whispered, and lifted one arm. He dug into a pocket and produced a small stone with an engraved Celtic knot. “She said it was... a lucky charm... So I would come home to her...”  
“Of course you will,” Fili said through gritted teeth.  
Kili groaned again, eyes pinched shut.  
“Eyes on me, Kili!” Fili nudged him. “Come on, eyes on me!”

Kili managed to open his eyes, but they were glassy with pain and exhaustion. “Promise...”  
“The only thing I promise is to kick your ass if you don’t stop!”  
“Promise to bring this home to my Ma,” Kili whispered.  
“Stop talking like that,” Fili said, an edge of despair to his voice. “Don’t check out on me!”

Kili swallowed hard and looked at him, and Fili couldn’t hold it any longer. He rested one hand on Kili’s cheek. “Stop talking like that,” he said, his voice hoarse with pain. “I can’t lose you, Kee. I can’t.”  
Blinking a few times with heavy lids, Kili stared at him, lips parted.  
“I can’t lose you,” Fili whispered, his thumb running across Kili’s cheekbone. “Please don’t leave me...”

Their eyes met, and for a moment, time seemed to stand still.

“Fee?”  
“Hmm?”  
“Have I ever told you...” Kili heaved a heavy, painful breath, “...ever told you how beautiful your eyes are?”  
Fili swallowed hard. “No...”  
“Now you know,” Kili whispered, a tired, lopsided smile on his face.  
“Oh you...” Fili whispered back, and rested his forehead against Kili’s.

“Fee,” Kili muttered after a moment.  
“Yes?”  
“If we get out of here-”  
“When we get out of here,” Fili cut in. “Anything else isn’t an option. Dublin, remember?”  
“Dublin,” Kili said, trying to remain focussed on Fili’s face. “Wanna come see.... Connemara with me, too?”  
“I’ll go everywhere with you,” Fili said softly, his thumb still caressing Kili’s cheek. “You won’t get rid of me after this. I belong with you.”

Kili looked at him, and his smile warmed, as tired as it was. “Why’d you never say anything?”  
“Because I didn’t want to ruin our friendship.” Fili huffed out a mirthless chuckle.  
“Yeah, me neither.” Kili rolled his eyes. “We’re idiots.”  
“Yeah.” Fili lifted his face, and breathed a kiss onto Kili’s forehead. “So, no checking out on me, yeah?”  
Kili managed to lift his hand and rest it on Fili’s cheek for a moment before his arm fell down again. “Always dreamed of finding all the tats on your body.”  
“Then definitely no kicking the bucket here,” Fili said, blinking forcefully. “I got lots of them.”

Their eyes met again.

“Fee?”  
“What?”  
“You gonna kiss me now or what?”

Fili couldn’t suppress a little snort, but how could he not comply? It was a shy little kiss, hardly more than a brush of lips, but it held the promise of more to come. They remained oblivious of the outside world after that, and only realised the fight was over when someone banged on the door. Fili grabbed his weapon, but it was Dwalin’s voice hollering their names.

“In here!” Fili called out, and seconds later, Dwalin kicked the door in.

He looked at Fili, at Kili, and back at Fili again. “You eggheads finally figured yourselves out?”

Fili and Kili exchanged a look.

“That obvious, huh?” Fili asked.  
“If ye care to look,” Dwalin replied with gruff fondness in his voice. “Come on, lads. We have a chopper outside and a couple medics who haven’t seen enough blood yet.”

Fili didn’t leave Kili’s side again, not during the airlift, not during the time Kili spent in the field hospital. He accompanied Kili to Dublin, where his mother greeted them both like long lost sons. Kili’s leg had been fucked up pretty bad, so Fili had to ferry him around in a wheelchair to get drinks in Dublin, because he owed Kili a drink and nothing was going to stop them now.

Once Kili could walk again they went to Connemara, because Fili was a man of his word, and they spent a few nights stargazing, the Irish sky being benevolent enough to offer clear nights.

Fili spent Christmas with Kili’s family, and had to admit his mother’s mince pies were unrivalled. Fili ate until he had to pop the first button of his jeans.

“So,” Dis said as she put coffee on the table. “When are you going to make an honest man out of my boy?”

Kili did a spit take with his own coffee and glared at his mother with eyes so wide they were about to pop out of his head. Fili snorted, not having had a sip of coffee yet.

“Mam, did you just propose for me?” Kili asked, voice slightly shrill.  
“Someone had to,” Dis replied matter-of-factly. “The time it took you two to figure yourselves out? I don’t want to drag myself to your wedding with a Zimmer frame.”

Kili stared at Fili, face burning.

“Um.” Fili cleared his throat. “Spring?”  
“Sounds good,” Dis replied and picked up the thermos. “More coffee?”  
“Do I... get a say in the matter?” Kili asked, glaring first at his mother, then his boyfriend.  
“Midsummer?” Fili offered with a wink.  
“You’re an idiot, Fee.”  
“Yes, but I’m your idiot.”

Kili shook his head with a sigh, but buried his fingers into the hair at the back of Fili’s head.

Dis smiled at the two, and silently slipped out of the room to give her son and soon to be son-in-law a little privacy.


End file.
